


A Purlfect World

by orphan_account



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Bamboo, Castiel's job is undisclosed but he has one, I am okay with this, I seem to be able to think of puns much easier when I have a visual thing to go from, Knitting, M/M, Maybe - Freeform, Nerves, Some puns, Stitches, Trenchcoat - Freeform, Yarn, both Dean and Castiel are out of character, flirting a bit I think, here; have it anyway....it was 'knit funny'....like not funny but for knitting, it's an AU without context, not beta read at all and I don't want to re-read it, shopkeeper/teacher Dean Winchester, the wine was really bad but got better with each glass, there was an extra pun I had but couldn't work it in, there were meant to be a lot more but it turned out to be quite fluffy instead, this is the least stressful thing I have ever written, three glasses of wine and I couldn't think of more puns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-17
Updated: 2016-04-17
Packaged: 2018-06-02 19:40:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6579799
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Castiel needs to unwind [see what I did there?! knitting....unwind.....yeah, it doesn't get any better than that] and Dean teaches him how.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Purlfect World

"I appreciate you giving me a ride." Castiel said through the open window as he closed the car door.

"Whatever, Craftstiel." Gabriel replied from the driver’s seat, flicking his indicator on and pulling away.

Castiel looked up at the shop signs on the unfamiliar street. He had seen the blog post on the Winchester’s Wools website and signed up straight away. He needed to find something to do outside of work that helped him de-stress, and his brother’s friends were nice enough, but they were as loud and intense as Gabriel. He hoped the other people in the class would be more relaxed.

Straightening his sleeves on his trenchcoat that wrapped him like a hug, Castiel gave a small nervous cough, took a deep breath and pushed open the door. The bell dinged gently, nudging the proprietor into action. 

Dean stepped from behind the cash register and approached the nervous-looking customer.

"Hi, can I help you?" 

Castiel gazed at the kaleidoscope of colour provided by the hundreds of skeins that lined the walls, feeling a little dumbfounded at what exactly he was meant to do now.

"Yes, I’m here for the beginner’s knitting class?"

"Awesome! Casteel, right?"

Castiel started to nod, then thought better of it. "It’s Cas-ti-el, but Cas is fine." 

"I’m Dean. I gotta tell you, I’m really glad you showed; I was starting to think there was something no-one was telling me. The other three that signed up cancelled so it’s just me and you. That okay?" Dean checked, glancing back as he lead the way to the table in the middle of the shop. Castiel followed,taking a seat opposite Dean, and hung his coat on the back of the chair.

"So Cas, have you ever knitted before?" Dean asked.

"I watched a few tutorials online but haven’t actually tried to make anything myself." Cas explained. 

"Okay, so first I’m going to get you to pick a project; whichever you pick you we will get finished this afternoon and you can take it home with you" Dean paused to pass the three items that had been waiting on his left to Cas. "You can do a garter stitch hat, a scarf in rib stitch, or if you’re feeling adventurous, a mug warmer in moss stitch." 

Castiel ran his fingertips over the soft wool and even stitches. He liked the feel of the bumps on the mug warmer, but had his heart set on the scarf. He looked up at Dean and gave a tentative smile, resting his hand on the scarf.

Dean helped Cas pick out a skein of chunky merino in muted aqua and showed him how to cast on, explaining that he would be learning to do a knit stitch and a purl stitch. Dean watched carefully as Castiel wound the wool around his finger and thumb, easing the bamboo needle up carefully so it caught the little loop and he didn’t drop any stitches. Castiel held up his needle for Dean to inspect. 

"Purlfect!" Dean grinned, earning a blush from Cas. 

Next he showed him how to make the stitches. Castiel concentrated, watching Dean’s hands as they married the line of yarn to the stitches on his needles. After Dean had demonstrated a few rows, Castiel felt ready to try it for himself. He began slowly, checking every stitch, and his confidence soon bloomed when he saw the pattern he was creating. Every so often, he would look up at Dean to check he was doing it right, and was met with an encouraging smile. The quiet, rhythmic clicking of the bamboo needles didn't pause as Cas asked Dean what he was working on.

"This?" Dean said, slightly lifting up the four small needles he was holding. Castiel raised his eyes from his project and nodded.

"It’s the second sock of a pair. I’m making ‘em for my brother" Dean explained."You ever had a pair of handmade socks? Nothin’ like ‘em, man. So soft and cosy. Makes you feel like you’re doing your job right if you can keep someone warm and comfy like that. I always make Sam a pair every Christmas and birthday."

"Does your brother work here too?" Castiel asked.

"No, he’s up in California; he trained as a lawyer then decided he wanted to run his own bookstore. I said he should name it name it Pages Through The Ages but no dice. Heh, I wanted to change the name of this place to Knit Happens, but it’s a family business so…….." Dean shrugged.

Castiel noticed a little shift in Dean’s mood as he talked; as if the distance between California and Kansas was more than he would have liked. Castiel tried to move the conversation back to home.

"How did you learn to knit?"

"My mom taught me; she used to make me sweaters and socks, and scarves, everything. Told me there was love in every stitch. Sounds like something out of a chick flick, doesn't it?" Dean said, with a little laugh.

"Not at all. And…………….knitting takes balls." Castiel dead-panned.

Dean burst out laughing, and Castiel felt a warm glow in his chest. When Dean smiled, it was like he was shining all the light in the world.

Dean announced that it was time for coffee, and Castiel focused solely on his project again; he was about half way through, and pleased with how well it was going. Chatting with Dean felt very comfortable, and he found knitting to be soothing and relaxing. His initial nerves when he entered the store had spiked when he found out the other people had cancelled, but they had faded as Dean patiently taught him. He held up the scarf and checked his stitching. 

"You’re doing great, Cas. How’re you finding it?" Dean asked, as he placed a mug on the coaster by Cas’s elbow. 

"I'm enjoying it. Thank you, Dean." Castiel said, turning slightly to meet Dean’s eyes.

Dean felt a little blush at their nearness but didn't want to move away. He gently took the needle from Castiel to examine it thoroughly, turning it back and forth. "The tension is perfect" Dean murmured, handing it back to Cas. Their fingers barely grazed in the exchange, but both Dean and Castiel felt it.

"So what made you want to learn to knit?" Dean asked as he sat back down on his side of the table and picked up his needles.

"I'm staying with my brother and he can be a little intense. I read knitting was a good way to relax so thought I would check out if there were any local places giving lessons or selling supplies, and here I am. I also thought it might be a good way to meet new people." Castiel explained, adding another row onto his scarf.

"That might have worked better if more people had turned up." Dean said, pausing his knitting to take a sip of coffee. 

"I don’t know….I think it worked out pretty well." Castiel ventured.

"Yeah, it did." Dean agreed, quietly delighted.

An hour later, and Castiel had knitted his final row. Dean had finished Sam’s gift earlier, but the easy conversation and gentle laughter had kept him close to Castiel, rather than getting up for more supplies to start a new project. He picked up his initial few rows of rib stitch from the start of their afternoon, and showed Cas how to bind off and weave in the loose ends. Once they had finished, Castiel immediately wrapped the scarf around his neck, charmed at how soft it felt and how much he had enjoyed everything he had discovered.  


Dean beamed, and asked Castiel if he could take a photo of the scarf to go on the blog. Cas took it off and laid it on the table, and Dean took out his cell and snapped a picture. Castiel gathered his things and walked with Dean to the register to pay for his class while Dean explained about the importance of blocking the scarf when he got home, and told Castiel to call him if he needed any help with anything, or wanted any guidance on his next project. 

"Oh, I’m usually at work when you’re open, but I could always email you?" 

"Yeah, sure, the email is the same as the one on the website…..or……..I could give you my cell number, just, if, you really get into trouble, because I know we haven’t really gone over picking up dropped stitches or anything." Dean offered, more nervous than he had been all day.

"I would like that." Castiel took out his phone and handed it to Dean.

Dean punched in his number and handed the phone back to Cas. The phone beeped, and Castiel opened the message from Gabriel telling him he was waiting outside. Reluctantly they said goodbye, and Castiel closed the door behind him as he went to meet Gabriel down the street. 

Dean tidied up the shop and locked up, thinking about his day and smiling. 

When Castiel got home, he went to his room and thoroughly examined the scarf. He was really proud of it; it felt good to have made something for himself, and he understood about the feeling of love in every stitch; he could imagine how good it must feel to be able to provide your family with something that protects them and keeps them safe. He wanted to learn how to give that, and hoped to earn that kind of love from someone else. He opened his laptop and looked up tutorials of how to block his scarf. Nothing made as much sense as how Dean explained it, but he didn't want to call him straight away. The last thing Castiel wanted to do was ruin everything he had made. 

A few days later, when Castiel got in from work one evening and the unblocked scarf still sat waiting on the hook on the back of the door, he took a deep breath, picked up his cellphone and dialled.

"Hello Dean."

**Author's Note:**

> This is my contribution to SPN Coldest Hits for April. The theme is 'Guilty Pleasures in a Craft Store.' It was a guilty pleasure to write, and takes place in a craft store, so that's the two stipulations covered.
> 
> I can knit, but really badly, and only knit and purl stitches. But I do enjoy it and it is relaxing, and I LOVE gifts made for me by other people, so yeah, that's where the idea came from. EDIT: I think maybe there are only a knit stitch and a purl stitch and it's various combinations of them that make up the patterns/types of stitches? Like I said, I'm bad at it!
> 
> I feel like it should've been a filthfest, but I can't write that so hope the puns kind of make up for it!!!! :)


End file.
